Friday, May 04, 2018

The Person God Uses Rises Above Discouragement

I heard a story of an optimistic farmer who couldn’t wait to greet each new day with a resounding, “Good morning, God!”  He lived near a woman whose morning greeting was more like, “I can’t wait until this day is over!”  They were  a little annoying to each other.  Where the farmer saw opportunity, the neighbor lady saw problems.  Where the farmer was satisfied, the neighbor lady was discontented.  One bright morning he exclaimed, “Look at the beautiful sky!  Did you see the glorious sunrise?”  The neighbor lady responded by saying, “Yeah, it’ll probably get so hot the crops will scorch!” Convinced that he could instill some awe and wonder into the neighbor lady’s attitude, he bought a remarkable dog.  He was a highly trained and very talented dog.  He invited her to watch his dog perform.  “Fetch!”  he commanded, as he tossed a stick out into the pond.  The dog bounded after the stick, and REMARKABLY WALKED ON THE WATER to retrieve the stick.  The neighbor lady responded, “Not much of a dog.  Can’t even swim, can he?” Discouragement, frustration, disappointment, difficult circumstances – we all face it.  It is part of life.  We all go through seasons of life where we do everything right but everything goes wrong.  But one truth we can never change is that our relationship with discouragement determines its role in our life.  Where discouragement sits in our life compared to where God sits in our life determines how much of a hold discouragement has on us. But we can overcome discouragement!  Join us this Sunday as we continue our series The Person God Uses and look at how Jeremiah was able to rise above discouragement.  We look forward to the opportunity to worship with you this weekend. Also, please remember our upcoming Bethesda work day.  There is still time to sign up for the Bethesda Cares work day THIS SATURDAY. Signing up is simple.  Just follow the link below, and sign up for an activity using your email address. http://signup.com/go/CPUmQqK It’s easy – you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on SignUp.com.  SignUp.com does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact Sarah Jacobs at sdj_1@yahoo.com and she can sign you up manually. Blessings, Pastor Brandon